Twelfth Night Tragedy Analysis

“Life is a tragedy full of happiness.” Romantic comedies are usually light and funny throughout the whole story, but Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night has a great deal of hurt in this play. Reading ‘Twelfth Night’ would make that believable. Twelfth Night is about twins who are separated in a shipwreck. The female twin, Viola, dresses up as a eunuch trying to woo, Olivia a countess, for the Duke, Orsino; who Viola fell in love with. Then when the twins find each other again they find themselves in a misunderstood situation. Romantic comedies are based on happiness with a little bit of tragedy added, but Twelfth Night is based on tragedy with some happiness added. Firstly, Shakespeare makes unrequited love a tragic sadness. Orsino is so depressed and desperate for the love of Olivia he will do anything to get over his love for her. This unrequited love differs from other romantic comedies because the characters are not usually this depressed or desperate. Secondly, Viola experiences so much pain thinking she had lost her brother, but typically death is not a part of romantic comedies. Thirdly, revenge is often a…show more content…In Twelfth Night Orsino is lovesick for Olivia, but she shows him no sign of affection. This hurts Orsino so badly that all he does is hope and wish for her to feel something for him. Orsino is so desperate to get over the love of Olivia. At the beginning of the play, Orsino mentions, “If music be the food of love, play on. Give me excess of it that, surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die” (Act 1, Scene 1, Line 1). Orsino is telling his servants to keep playing music if it is the food of love. He wants them to play so much that he gets sick of love, like when you eat so much you feel sick. Some say unrequited love, the feeling of being in love with someone who will not love you back, is possibly the worst feeling ever. Orsino’s love for Olivia is so great, he

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